Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Reviews.
" Notes , we are confirmed m our opinion of tho connection- and continuity of all the chivalric degreeW'now worked in England , and it seems a p ity that some well-considered scheme cannot be adopted to weld them into a compact and comprehensive system . Tims , in addition to the
Templars and the Knig hts of Malta , we find that the Red Cross of Constantine , and the Holy Sepulchre degrees are incidentally elucidated by Bro . Yarker ' s learned researches . The fact is , that the introduction of the fantastic degrees of the Ancient and Accepted Rite
into England dislocated and destroyed the Ancient York working , which comprised everything that is really interesting in the pseutlo-Soottish Rite ; viz ., the Rose Croix and Kadosh degrees , both of which , as well as the others referred to , were conferred as appendages to the Order of the
Temple . Doubtless , Dunckerley , as Bro . Tarker intimates , must be held responsible for many unwarrantable innovations on the simpler plan existing in his time , but he did good service by creating a central governing boely for the Templars —an advantage which they have since retained .
Tne Duke of Sussex was at first an enthusiastic admirer of the Chivalric Orders , but after the expose of the French " Ordre du Temple , " in which he held a hi gh position , the ardour of his Royal Highness suddenly cooled , and it is believed that long before his death he would willingl y have witnessed the extinction of all
those Orders in England . One thing is certain , that he contemplated group ing them all , with one exception , under the wing of a certain Order , with the view of restricting tlieir working to the metropolis , and thus reducing their future action to a focus . Upon this point we can speak with authority , as evidence exists to substantiate the assertion . A
singular discovery of papers recently made at Freemasons' Hall , which compriseel documents of the utmost value to the Craft , also contained a memorandum of the late Grantl Master ' s to this
effect : — " That a warrant be granted to the Red Cross Kni g hts of Palestine , empowering them to work all the inferior degrees in Masonry , except the R . A . and Templars . " Wo are informed that this curious
memorandum , and also portions of the Red Cross ritual , were , upon the application of Lorel Kenlis , the present head of the Red Cross Order , delivereel over to his lordshi p b y the present Grand Master ' s command . It may also bo obsorveel that the conveyance of the documents of the York Grand Lodge to the Duke of Sussex , as
mentioneel by Bro . Yarker , receives a certain corroboration from the fact that tho original warrant anil books of the Mount Calvary Encampment in London were conveyeel to his Royal Highness for inspection and never returned . There cannot be a doubt in ( he mind of any one who has considered the subject , that no Supremo Council of the 33 ° would ever have been suflered
in England during the life-time of the Duke , and accordingly , no such hotly was established—anel then under American authority—until December 1 S 45 . Upon this matter we could speak volumes , but time and space will not permit , although the real history and ori g in of the Council would bo
decidedly interesting to all who have studied the rise and transformation of the huules grades . Bro . Yarker touches the key to a great part of the mystery in his account of the proceedings of one Matthew Dawes , 33 ° , who , in the good olel despotic style , "put his foot" upon every degree
formerly worked by the Templars which in his vain imagination conflicted in tho sli ghtest manner with any of the new inventions of the " Ancient and Accepted Rite . " The Order of tho Temple in England is , however , greatly indebted to Bro . Yarker for the
ability and industry with which ho illustrates so important a phase iu the history of Chivalric Masonry ; and although we believe that the historian of " Eighteenth Century Freemasonry iu England" has yet to be found , we are convinced that Bro . Yarker has contributed more than one
chapter to the werk , whenever it . shall be written . The Masonic Order in general reaps the benefit of such investigations , for in this enli ghtened age every episode of the past—every straggling ray of light which serves to illuminate the sentiments or the deeds of our Masonic forefathers—must be
Reviews.
welcomed by every lover of truth . In this spirit we heartily commend the efforts of Bro . Yarker , and congratulate the Kni ghts Templar upon the possession of so distinguished a member .
Doctors' Commons , its Courts and Registries ; with a treatise on Probate . Court Business . B y G . J . FOSTER , formerly Clerk of the Papers of the Prerogative Court of Chancery , and now of Her Majesty ' s Court of Probate . London :
Printed and published b y REEVES , SON & Co ., Playhouse-yard , Blackfriars , E . C . ( 2 nd edition . ) The various amendments effected by the Legislature in the laws relating to Ecclesiastical Courts culminated , as many of our readers are aware , in
the Act of 1857 , by which the peculiar jurisdiction of those cumbrous relics of antiquity was abolished anel centered in the Court of Probate . Of the advantages to the public which accrued from this change we need hardly speak , although
it was doubtless unpopular among the proctors . It is beyond question that the ancient machinery was intricate , involved , and expensive ; whereas the present system , especially as regards the Probate Court , possesses the antithetical merits of being at once simple , clear , and cheap . Mr .
Foster , who has acquired a vast and practical experience both in the old and new courts , now p laces before the profession anel the public a book which we can heartil y recommend as an admirable treatise ou the various modes of procedure in Doctors' Commons , and as an unerring guide to its formalities and practice .
It not only affords complete information as to the powers and privileges of the Ecclesiastical Courts and the Courts of Probate and Divorce , but recites clearl y anel succinctly the law of testamentary jurisdiction in Count y Courts—a subject
which , we imagine , is little known outside the legal profession , although it is one of great importance to the mass of the community . This useful work has now reached a second edition , which has been carefully revised by the author ,
and we may adel that its value is considerabl y enhanced by a copious index , marginal references , anel concise quotations from the various Acts reluting to cases decided in Doctors' Commons . The Appendix comprises an exhaustive list of the forms used in every branch of the Courts , and
we can safely congratulate Mr . Foster upon having compressed into this manual of 2 G 4 pages such an array of technical and legal knowledge as will justly entitle him to the thanks not merely of the profession , but of tho public at large The work is neatl y got tip , and the typography is excellent .
Masonic Record of Western India , June and July , lt > G 9 . Byculla , Bombay . Edited b y Brother GEORGE BEASE . Items of general Masonic news compose the first pages of this Magazine . The June number
contains an interesting memoir of the late Bro . Major-General Ramsay , P . D . G . M . for Bengal ; and a lieport of the District Grand Lodge of Madras , anel there are several reports of other Masonic meetings . In the Jul ) ' number the
editor refers to having received a stray copy ol THE FREEMASON , which he pronounces a "powerful rival" to our Knglish Masonic contemporary . Wc say nothing about rivalry , but wo can safely assert that THE FKEEMASOX is now at the head
of the European Masonic Press , both in circulation and influence . That fearful talc , the " Nomesis , " is , thank the gods , concluded in the July number . Verily , it is a . sufficient nemesis for any poor mortal to read its inllated p latitudes .
We like the " Masonic Record " on the whole very much , and shall be glad to exchange with it , news from our Indian Empire being -always interesting . We may note that our article ou " The New Grand Ollicers" is quoted at length .
It is a matter for regret to learn that the editor of this able periodical , is at present , by what appears to bo a hasty and harsh act of the District Grand Lodge of iJonibay , excluded from
tho Order . Without passing judgment upon the case , we bespeak for it that impartial and enlightened consideration which has ever been accorded to appeals by the Grand Lodge of England .
Papers On Masonry.
PAPERS ON MASONRY .
BY A LEWIS . XXI . —MASONRY AND THE ASS . " And the Lord opened the mouth of the ass , and she said unto Balaam : What have I done unto thee , that thou
hast smitten me these three times ? —Numbers xxii . 28 . " Tell ye the daughter of Sion , Behold , thy King cometh unto thee , meek , and sitting upon an ass , and a colt the foal of an ass . "—Matthew xxi . 5 .
Throughout all historical ages , whether in the East or the West , the ass has been held in estimation for its Humility , Patience , and Endurance . But these well-known qualities only form a portion of the symbolical attributes of the animal , and to the Masonic student these attributes are well worthy of consideration .
Henry Cornelius Agrippa , to whom I referred in my paper ou the Number Seven—of which the present is designeelly a multiple—in his remarkable treatise , " On the Vanity of Arts and Sciences , " devotes a whole chapter to the praise of the Ass , nor are other authors without passages referring to its mystical meaning . Towards the conclusion of that semi-serious and
semisarcastic book , in which Agrippa holds up to public shame the condition of the wisdom and pseudo-wisdom of his time , writing , as it wore , as if his pen followed the immediate inspiration of his scornful and saddened spirit , he suddenly winds up a chapter in praise of the Word of God in these words : —
'' It is therefore better , and more profitable , to be an Idiot , and without knowledge ; to believe by faith and charity , and to become next to God , than being lofty and proud , through the subtilties of the Sciences , to fall into the possession of the Serpent . Thus we find in the Gospel how Christ was received of Idiots , of the vulgar people and of the simpler sort , whilo
he was rejected , despised and persecuted even to death , by the High-priests , by the Lawyers , by the Scribes , by the Doctors and Rabbis . For this cause , Christ chose his Apostles not Scribes , not Doctors , not Priests , but unlearned persons of the vulgar peoplo , void of knowledge , unskilful and Asses . " He then defends himself against the imputation of
irreverence in thus calling the Apostles Asses , by entering on his " Digression in praise of the Ass . " This animal the Hebrew Doctors regard as the hieroglyphic of Fortitude and Strength , Patience and Clemency , and in the Scphiroth it is assigned to Iloehma , tlio secontl of the Sephiroth , signifying Wisdom .
According to other authorities , the Ass was connected with Strength , through Vulcan ; its month is September and its sign is Libra . " For his conditions , " exclaims Agrippa , who had had bitter experience of the poor life of a literary man , " are most necessary for a scholar of wisdom ; for he lives by little food , and is contented with whatsoever it be . Patiently he endures
penury , hunger , labour , stripes , and all maimer of persecutions ; yet of so low ami poor an understanding that he cannot discern between lettuce and thistles ; of a cle-an and innocent heart , void of Cliolcr , being at peace with all living ' creatures : patiently carrying all
burthens laid upon his back , as a reward whereof , he is never troubled with lice , or any diseases , and liveth longer than any other beast . " In the Levitical Law , the ass was especially exempted , together with man , from sacrifice , in the case of the first-born , a ransom being possible .
An old tradition , often used by the Biblical painters of the middle ages , connects the presence of an ass with the Nativity , and we frequently find p ictures of tho Holy Family accompanied by the ass from the first . The middle ages possessed a Festival of the Ass , in which many orgies were enacted . I shall have occasion later on iu this paper to allutle to the mysteries of
Greece , and there the ass plays no inconsiderable part . In connection with the Flight into Egypt , whither all religious and philosophical teachers seem iu antiquity to go , we find the ass , and therewith the common proverb that " the ass carries mysteries . " I do not propose to follow Cornelius Agrippa through his labyrinth of illustrations , two more remarks will
ulHcc . " It was a nam * , " says he , " common to the Christians among tho Romans , to be called Asinarii , and they were wont to paint the image of Christ with the ears of an ass , as Tertnllian witnesses . " It should be rembered that Agrippa belonged to the secret Society of llosicrucians , of which John , Abbot of Trittcnheiin , Ilcuchlin , and others were members . It
could be shown wh y Christ should be , without irreverence , so depicted , but it is entering on the domain of religion . The fact of tho horns of Mosea should not be forgotten . The head of the Ass , however , was itself worshipped and preserved in the Iloly Place , by the later Jews . Of this fact Apion makes mention , and publicly accuses them of sacrilege . Ho affirms in his treatise
against Jo .-e'plius that the discovery was made when Antiochus Epi p hanes spoiled the Temple , and there ( bund an Ass ' s head of pure gold with many offerings appertaining to it . Although Josephus denies the accusation , there does not appear to be any reason to doubt the fact—Josephus not being renowned for a scrupulous adherence to the truth . Ap ion likewise receives tho indirect support of Tacitus , an historian
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Reviews.
" Notes , we are confirmed m our opinion of tho connection- and continuity of all the chivalric degreeW'now worked in England , and it seems a p ity that some well-considered scheme cannot be adopted to weld them into a compact and comprehensive system . Tims , in addition to the
Templars and the Knig hts of Malta , we find that the Red Cross of Constantine , and the Holy Sepulchre degrees are incidentally elucidated by Bro . Yarker ' s learned researches . The fact is , that the introduction of the fantastic degrees of the Ancient and Accepted Rite
into England dislocated and destroyed the Ancient York working , which comprised everything that is really interesting in the pseutlo-Soottish Rite ; viz ., the Rose Croix and Kadosh degrees , both of which , as well as the others referred to , were conferred as appendages to the Order of the
Temple . Doubtless , Dunckerley , as Bro . Tarker intimates , must be held responsible for many unwarrantable innovations on the simpler plan existing in his time , but he did good service by creating a central governing boely for the Templars —an advantage which they have since retained .
Tne Duke of Sussex was at first an enthusiastic admirer of the Chivalric Orders , but after the expose of the French " Ordre du Temple , " in which he held a hi gh position , the ardour of his Royal Highness suddenly cooled , and it is believed that long before his death he would willingl y have witnessed the extinction of all
those Orders in England . One thing is certain , that he contemplated group ing them all , with one exception , under the wing of a certain Order , with the view of restricting tlieir working to the metropolis , and thus reducing their future action to a focus . Upon this point we can speak with authority , as evidence exists to substantiate the assertion . A
singular discovery of papers recently made at Freemasons' Hall , which compriseel documents of the utmost value to the Craft , also contained a memorandum of the late Grantl Master ' s to this
effect : — " That a warrant be granted to the Red Cross Kni g hts of Palestine , empowering them to work all the inferior degrees in Masonry , except the R . A . and Templars . " Wo are informed that this curious
memorandum , and also portions of the Red Cross ritual , were , upon the application of Lorel Kenlis , the present head of the Red Cross Order , delivereel over to his lordshi p b y the present Grand Master ' s command . It may also bo obsorveel that the conveyance of the documents of the York Grand Lodge to the Duke of Sussex , as
mentioneel by Bro . Yarker , receives a certain corroboration from the fact that tho original warrant anil books of the Mount Calvary Encampment in London were conveyeel to his Royal Highness for inspection and never returned . There cannot be a doubt in ( he mind of any one who has considered the subject , that no Supremo Council of the 33 ° would ever have been suflered
in England during the life-time of the Duke , and accordingly , no such hotly was established—anel then under American authority—until December 1 S 45 . Upon this matter we could speak volumes , but time and space will not permit , although the real history and ori g in of the Council would bo
decidedly interesting to all who have studied the rise and transformation of the huules grades . Bro . Yarker touches the key to a great part of the mystery in his account of the proceedings of one Matthew Dawes , 33 ° , who , in the good olel despotic style , "put his foot" upon every degree
formerly worked by the Templars which in his vain imagination conflicted in tho sli ghtest manner with any of the new inventions of the " Ancient and Accepted Rite . " The Order of tho Temple in England is , however , greatly indebted to Bro . Yarker for the
ability and industry with which ho illustrates so important a phase iu the history of Chivalric Masonry ; and although we believe that the historian of " Eighteenth Century Freemasonry iu England" has yet to be found , we are convinced that Bro . Yarker has contributed more than one
chapter to the werk , whenever it . shall be written . The Masonic Order in general reaps the benefit of such investigations , for in this enli ghtened age every episode of the past—every straggling ray of light which serves to illuminate the sentiments or the deeds of our Masonic forefathers—must be
Reviews.
welcomed by every lover of truth . In this spirit we heartily commend the efforts of Bro . Yarker , and congratulate the Kni ghts Templar upon the possession of so distinguished a member .
Doctors' Commons , its Courts and Registries ; with a treatise on Probate . Court Business . B y G . J . FOSTER , formerly Clerk of the Papers of the Prerogative Court of Chancery , and now of Her Majesty ' s Court of Probate . London :
Printed and published b y REEVES , SON & Co ., Playhouse-yard , Blackfriars , E . C . ( 2 nd edition . ) The various amendments effected by the Legislature in the laws relating to Ecclesiastical Courts culminated , as many of our readers are aware , in
the Act of 1857 , by which the peculiar jurisdiction of those cumbrous relics of antiquity was abolished anel centered in the Court of Probate . Of the advantages to the public which accrued from this change we need hardly speak , although
it was doubtless unpopular among the proctors . It is beyond question that the ancient machinery was intricate , involved , and expensive ; whereas the present system , especially as regards the Probate Court , possesses the antithetical merits of being at once simple , clear , and cheap . Mr .
Foster , who has acquired a vast and practical experience both in the old and new courts , now p laces before the profession anel the public a book which we can heartil y recommend as an admirable treatise ou the various modes of procedure in Doctors' Commons , and as an unerring guide to its formalities and practice .
It not only affords complete information as to the powers and privileges of the Ecclesiastical Courts and the Courts of Probate and Divorce , but recites clearl y anel succinctly the law of testamentary jurisdiction in Count y Courts—a subject
which , we imagine , is little known outside the legal profession , although it is one of great importance to the mass of the community . This useful work has now reached a second edition , which has been carefully revised by the author ,
and we may adel that its value is considerabl y enhanced by a copious index , marginal references , anel concise quotations from the various Acts reluting to cases decided in Doctors' Commons . The Appendix comprises an exhaustive list of the forms used in every branch of the Courts , and
we can safely congratulate Mr . Foster upon having compressed into this manual of 2 G 4 pages such an array of technical and legal knowledge as will justly entitle him to the thanks not merely of the profession , but of tho public at large The work is neatl y got tip , and the typography is excellent .
Masonic Record of Western India , June and July , lt > G 9 . Byculla , Bombay . Edited b y Brother GEORGE BEASE . Items of general Masonic news compose the first pages of this Magazine . The June number
contains an interesting memoir of the late Bro . Major-General Ramsay , P . D . G . M . for Bengal ; and a lieport of the District Grand Lodge of Madras , anel there are several reports of other Masonic meetings . In the Jul ) ' number the
editor refers to having received a stray copy ol THE FREEMASON , which he pronounces a "powerful rival" to our Knglish Masonic contemporary . Wc say nothing about rivalry , but wo can safely assert that THE FKEEMASOX is now at the head
of the European Masonic Press , both in circulation and influence . That fearful talc , the " Nomesis , " is , thank the gods , concluded in the July number . Verily , it is a . sufficient nemesis for any poor mortal to read its inllated p latitudes .
We like the " Masonic Record " on the whole very much , and shall be glad to exchange with it , news from our Indian Empire being -always interesting . We may note that our article ou " The New Grand Ollicers" is quoted at length .
It is a matter for regret to learn that the editor of this able periodical , is at present , by what appears to bo a hasty and harsh act of the District Grand Lodge of iJonibay , excluded from
tho Order . Without passing judgment upon the case , we bespeak for it that impartial and enlightened consideration which has ever been accorded to appeals by the Grand Lodge of England .
Papers On Masonry.
PAPERS ON MASONRY .
BY A LEWIS . XXI . —MASONRY AND THE ASS . " And the Lord opened the mouth of the ass , and she said unto Balaam : What have I done unto thee , that thou
hast smitten me these three times ? —Numbers xxii . 28 . " Tell ye the daughter of Sion , Behold , thy King cometh unto thee , meek , and sitting upon an ass , and a colt the foal of an ass . "—Matthew xxi . 5 .
Throughout all historical ages , whether in the East or the West , the ass has been held in estimation for its Humility , Patience , and Endurance . But these well-known qualities only form a portion of the symbolical attributes of the animal , and to the Masonic student these attributes are well worthy of consideration .
Henry Cornelius Agrippa , to whom I referred in my paper ou the Number Seven—of which the present is designeelly a multiple—in his remarkable treatise , " On the Vanity of Arts and Sciences , " devotes a whole chapter to the praise of the Ass , nor are other authors without passages referring to its mystical meaning . Towards the conclusion of that semi-serious and
semisarcastic book , in which Agrippa holds up to public shame the condition of the wisdom and pseudo-wisdom of his time , writing , as it wore , as if his pen followed the immediate inspiration of his scornful and saddened spirit , he suddenly winds up a chapter in praise of the Word of God in these words : —
'' It is therefore better , and more profitable , to be an Idiot , and without knowledge ; to believe by faith and charity , and to become next to God , than being lofty and proud , through the subtilties of the Sciences , to fall into the possession of the Serpent . Thus we find in the Gospel how Christ was received of Idiots , of the vulgar people and of the simpler sort , whilo
he was rejected , despised and persecuted even to death , by the High-priests , by the Lawyers , by the Scribes , by the Doctors and Rabbis . For this cause , Christ chose his Apostles not Scribes , not Doctors , not Priests , but unlearned persons of the vulgar peoplo , void of knowledge , unskilful and Asses . " He then defends himself against the imputation of
irreverence in thus calling the Apostles Asses , by entering on his " Digression in praise of the Ass . " This animal the Hebrew Doctors regard as the hieroglyphic of Fortitude and Strength , Patience and Clemency , and in the Scphiroth it is assigned to Iloehma , tlio secontl of the Sephiroth , signifying Wisdom .
According to other authorities , the Ass was connected with Strength , through Vulcan ; its month is September and its sign is Libra . " For his conditions , " exclaims Agrippa , who had had bitter experience of the poor life of a literary man , " are most necessary for a scholar of wisdom ; for he lives by little food , and is contented with whatsoever it be . Patiently he endures
penury , hunger , labour , stripes , and all maimer of persecutions ; yet of so low ami poor an understanding that he cannot discern between lettuce and thistles ; of a cle-an and innocent heart , void of Cliolcr , being at peace with all living ' creatures : patiently carrying all
burthens laid upon his back , as a reward whereof , he is never troubled with lice , or any diseases , and liveth longer than any other beast . " In the Levitical Law , the ass was especially exempted , together with man , from sacrifice , in the case of the first-born , a ransom being possible .
An old tradition , often used by the Biblical painters of the middle ages , connects the presence of an ass with the Nativity , and we frequently find p ictures of tho Holy Family accompanied by the ass from the first . The middle ages possessed a Festival of the Ass , in which many orgies were enacted . I shall have occasion later on iu this paper to allutle to the mysteries of
Greece , and there the ass plays no inconsiderable part . In connection with the Flight into Egypt , whither all religious and philosophical teachers seem iu antiquity to go , we find the ass , and therewith the common proverb that " the ass carries mysteries . " I do not propose to follow Cornelius Agrippa through his labyrinth of illustrations , two more remarks will
ulHcc . " It was a nam * , " says he , " common to the Christians among tho Romans , to be called Asinarii , and they were wont to paint the image of Christ with the ears of an ass , as Tertnllian witnesses . " It should be rembered that Agrippa belonged to the secret Society of llosicrucians , of which John , Abbot of Trittcnheiin , Ilcuchlin , and others were members . It
could be shown wh y Christ should be , without irreverence , so depicted , but it is entering on the domain of religion . The fact of tho horns of Mosea should not be forgotten . The head of the Ass , however , was itself worshipped and preserved in the Iloly Place , by the later Jews . Of this fact Apion makes mention , and publicly accuses them of sacrilege . Ho affirms in his treatise
against Jo .-e'plius that the discovery was made when Antiochus Epi p hanes spoiled the Temple , and there ( bund an Ass ' s head of pure gold with many offerings appertaining to it . Although Josephus denies the accusation , there does not appear to be any reason to doubt the fact—Josephus not being renowned for a scrupulous adherence to the truth . Ap ion likewise receives tho indirect support of Tacitus , an historian