Masonic Musings.

Est et fideli tuta silentio Merces : vetabo qui Cereris Sacrum Volgarit arcanae , sub isdem Sit trabibus , fragilemve mecum

Solvat phaselon . " Hence it is evident that an acquaintance with the nature , mysteries and obligations of the Society into whicli we are admitted at our

initiation , does not necessarily imply more than a very slight knowledge of the religion and intellectual combination , for the extension , preservation and transmission of which , that Society has

been formed and has carried out its secret duties from generation to generation . Both these , the combination and the compact , ought to be made respectively the object of attention and serious

investigation in every well instructed Lodge : — but as the rites and ceremonies , the signs and symbols of our convention , constitute the theme of the regular lectures , my observations shall be

confined on the present occasion , and probably on any future one , should time and circumstance permit me to resume my musings , to the great end for which the various means of instruction

have been adopted . It will be obvious to every reflecting Mason that the proper order to be followed in our researches will be that in which the noviciate receives his first instruction , and in

which it is afterwards communicated to him in his passage to the higher degrees of Fellow Craft and Master Mason , —beginning with the most simple elements and cautiously developing the sublime

object of the science . I propose therefore to invest the order which the superior dignity of the moral and relig ious investigation would prescribe and then having laid a firm foundation , it

may be more easy to work upwards , cementing and adorning each successive course of Masonry by which we gradually raise our structure , till at length by the favour and permission of the

Great Architect of thc Universe , we may erect a tower of strength , crowned with a Holy Temple , pointing at least if not reaching to the Heavensand dedicated to the honour and glory of Him who from His throne beholds all the dwellers

upon earth , and graciously accepts their sincere , earnest , though humble endeavours to magnify His Name—and into which all may enter freely ,

for therein is neither Greek nor Jew , Barbarian , Scythian , bond nor free- —but Christ is all and in all .

Let us begin then with the act of building , our sixth branch ov division—and let us contemplate Architecture , or the knowledge of practice of the best modes of constructing every kind of edifice or fabric without restriction as to

purpose or material , —on the principle of Wisdom , Strength and Beauty . Architecture includes the rules and methods of forming every description of temple , dwelling or monument , with their

accessories and decorations , of fortifications or muniments of war , of ships or floating vessels . And it is therefore commonly divided into Civil , Military and Naval .

To one class of buildings our attention must be particularl y directed , as being more dependent on that which is , in its strictest sense , Masonr)—the craft of a Mason in stone . An obstacle , we

may observe , is found on the very threshold of our Temple of Mystery , which none but the Mason ' s foot can clt-arly overstep , : md this is the question—How came Architecture , or Masonrv ,

Masonic Musings.

as a part of Architecture , to be connected in so intimate , so peculiar a manner with Religion , as to constitute by any process of amalgamation , that which is now denominated Freemasonry

The complete solution of this enquiry is the keystone of our noble Arch , the glorious corner stone which the builders refused , the sublime subject of many intricate and mysterious

speculations which must be gradually and carefully apporched in a Master Masons ' Lodge , in the meanwhile I will endeavour to reply to this important question in terms which

may sufficiently demonstrate the fact , and account for the orig in of this connection between Relig ion and Architecture , without improperly disclosing its main object , the extraordinary

means by which it has been effected , or all the purposes to which it has been applied . In every age since the Flood , nay , proofs are now rapidly accumulatingthatevenata period long

antecedent to this great opening of the floodgates of divine wrath , and in all nations which have attained to any degree of civilisation , a very few excepted , the skill and ingenuity of man have

been exercised in thc design and erection of some kind of sacred edifices , that is , of buildings dedicated and consecrated to the honour or worship of the Celestial Being , or beings

supposed to control his destiny ; and tins rule applies with equal force to the worshippers of the One God , Jeovah , to thc votaries of Polytheism and Idolatry , to the Holy Patriarchs , to

Jews , Christains , and those who adored the personified attributes of Divinity , or fell down like the stiff-necked Israelites of old , and worshipped the molten calf which Aaron had fashioned for them .

Tlie motives for this general practice might be various , and in a multitude of cases , let us hope , that it was more or less praiseworthy . It mig ht arise from true and genuine piety , which

suggests that whateverwe do , we should do all to tlie Glory of gGod ; that our best talents and •/ acuities should be devoted to His service , from whose bounteous hand we have received them

and that although He , Invisible and Incomprehensible dwclleth not in temples made with hands , yet that His honour is magnified , and our

reverence exhibited , by raising to the glory of His Name , the most august and most perfect works of whicli the limited powers of man are capable .

The practice of whicli I speak might also spring from that "last infirmity of noble minds , " which perhaps has been more correctl y described by one of our most elegant and philosophic

writers , one whom the gracious lady who sways so wisely the sceptre of this realm has recentl y delighted tc honour , as the first infirmity of minds ignoble as well as noble "—the desire for fame ,

winch displayed itself on the Plain of Shinar , and which has been , with results not always too satisfactory , the great incentive to daring actions , arduous undertakings , and , unhappily , also to

terrible crimes , but which , nevertheless , could be more fully satisfied by contributing to the splendour of public monuments than by any other

means . Or it mig ht be that the heads of nations regarded the solemnities , and therefore the places of religious worship and obsiivanee as possessing a powerfdl influence over the character and dis-

Masonic Musings.

position of their people , as effective instruments of rule and government . They were possibly on this account more solicitous about the forms and decorations of their temples , which appealed

directly and at once to the aesthetic tastes of the assembly , than about the purity of their religion , or the morality of their lives . Whatever may have been the cause , such

unquestionably has been the fact , that both Jewish and Pagan , Suranian , Semitic , and Aryan history abounds with notices of sacred architecture , while little is said of any other kind , and existing

ruins of the art confirm the belief that this sacred architecture was the principal object of attention . Now it must be remembered that true religion had itstraditions , its types , its symbols , its

figurative language , its sublime mysteries unfolded by degrees , its deep recesses and dark sayings , not to be illuminated till the sun of righteousness should arise with healing on its wings . Its

manifold corruptions plunged their authors into deeper and deeper darkness , dimmed though they could not extinguish that light which shineth in darkness , and for a long period left

thc whole world , with the exception of one favoured race in profound obscurity . Human philosophy , the outcome of schools void of the guiding influence of true religion , mingled with

the dregs of heaven-born truth , produced a compound of falsehood , trickery , and folly , in which scarcely the faintest lineaments of the original divine doctrine , whereon the happiness of the

human race depended , was to be traced . Still it was there—thc rough casket in which the brilliant gem was encased , could not restrain

its gorgeous rays from bursting into light , and it was occasionally discovered , and joyously hailed , b y highly-gifted men , whose eyes were not blinded by the clouds of prejudice or

passion . Still it was there , rousing admiration and wonder in those permitted to witness its splendour , resembling in its unlimited magnificence

the glorious orb of day , sinking to rest beyond the boundless prairies of the western world , tinging the whole universe with its golden hue , awaiting but the master-spirit to explain its

mysterious beauties , and powerfull y recalling to the reflecting mind the never-to-be-forgotten lines of Longfellow , wherein he has adapted the

beautiful myth of the Red Swan to a sunset p icture : — " Can it be the sun descending

. O ' er the level plain of water 5 Or the red swan floating , flying , Wounded by the magic arrow , Staining all the waves with crimson ,

With the crimson ot its life-blood , Pilling all the air with splendour , With the splendour of its plumage . " Still it was there , and to its inspiring

influence we owe not less the massive pyramids of Egypt , the ruins of Thebais and J uxor , the colossal buildings of Sicilian Pcestum , and the cyclopean structures of Greece , than the Temple

of Solomon , and the Cathedral of St . Paul . But though this precious princip le was preserved , it was concealed ; though it stimulated the ardour , and rewarded the search of true

philosophers in every age , it could only be communicated to those who were qualified to embrace it . Hence arose that otherwise unaccountable precaution that nearly all the sacred edifices of