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Head , Ludgate-street , 40 ; Kose Tavern , Cheapside , and Oxford Arms , Ludgate-fctreet , 94 ; in which he inserted anything which struck him either as useful or particularly amusing . It is partly in manuscript , partly in print , and comprises some ancient Masonic charges , constitutions , forms of summons , a list of all the Lodges of
his time under the Gr . L . of England , whether in London , the country , or abroad ; together with some extracts from the " Grubstreet Journal , " the " -General Evening Post , " and other journals of the day . The dates range from 1724 to 1740 , The first leaves of this book consist of the advertisements of various
tradesmen , who probably thought that an intimation that they were members of the Masonic body would bring " grist to the mill . " Accordingly , the first of these consist of a medallion in one corner , containing a figure , which I shall have occasion to describe presently , and the motto , " Ab origine mundi" underneath it : while in the centre is a Freemason ( supposed , we imagine , to be a P . M ., as he carries in his hand the celebrated Forty-seventh Proposition of the First Book of Euclid , and probably intended for Mr . Carrington
himself , ) clothed in a white apron , and the old-fashioned white gauntlets , which are now so seldom seen , indeed , I only know one Brother who wears them now , an old P . M . in Cardiff . At the foot of this picture are the following words : — " Carrington ' s best mild York Biver Tobacco . " There are also three other tobacco advertisements , two of which are " Betts ' s best Tirginia ; " the third ( a most elaborate picture of an architect showing the ground plan of a
building to a-W . M . and other Brethren , surrounded by Masonic implements of all kinds , ) of " Stainer ' s best Virginia . " It is clear from these advertisements that the custom of making Freemasonry of use for increasing trade , was then , as it is now , very commonly adopted ; it is a custom " more honoured in the breach than in the observance , " and I confess that I much dislike to see
the square and compasses , or interlaced triangles , or any Masonic emblems displayed on a tradesman ' s card , or at the top of a playbill , announcing a benefit night for a country actor , with a request to his " Brethren" to support him ; in the present day there is no knowing whether the " Brother" so advertising is a Freemason or an Oddfellow , for the Odd-fellows too have adopted the square and compasses , cross pens , and other Masonic emblems , and 1 have before
now seen precisely the same emblems used indiscriminately in a local paper heading advertisements both for Freemasons and Odd-fellows . Such practices cannot be in accordance with the spirit of the Craft , for as every one before his initiation signs a declaration that he is not induced to join the Craft from any mercenary motion , he surely
ought not afterwards to attempt to make Freemasonry a portion of his trade . By the above remarks , I do not mean to cast a slur on the character of any of our ancient Brethren , the above instances are quoted merely to show what was then in vogue , but in the present advanced and enlightened age , such practices are surely most reprehensible *
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Untitled Article
Head , Ludgate-street , 40 ; Kose Tavern , Cheapside , and Oxford Arms , Ludgate-fctreet , 94 ; in which he inserted anything which struck him either as useful or particularly amusing . It is partly in manuscript , partly in print , and comprises some ancient Masonic charges , constitutions , forms of summons , a list of all the Lodges of
his time under the Gr . L . of England , whether in London , the country , or abroad ; together with some extracts from the " Grubstreet Journal , " the " -General Evening Post , " and other journals of the day . The dates range from 1724 to 1740 , The first leaves of this book consist of the advertisements of various
tradesmen , who probably thought that an intimation that they were members of the Masonic body would bring " grist to the mill . " Accordingly , the first of these consist of a medallion in one corner , containing a figure , which I shall have occasion to describe presently , and the motto , " Ab origine mundi" underneath it : while in the centre is a Freemason ( supposed , we imagine , to be a P . M ., as he carries in his hand the celebrated Forty-seventh Proposition of the First Book of Euclid , and probably intended for Mr . Carrington
himself , ) clothed in a white apron , and the old-fashioned white gauntlets , which are now so seldom seen , indeed , I only know one Brother who wears them now , an old P . M . in Cardiff . At the foot of this picture are the following words : — " Carrington ' s best mild York Biver Tobacco . " There are also three other tobacco advertisements , two of which are " Betts ' s best Tirginia ; " the third ( a most elaborate picture of an architect showing the ground plan of a
building to a-W . M . and other Brethren , surrounded by Masonic implements of all kinds , ) of " Stainer ' s best Virginia . " It is clear from these advertisements that the custom of making Freemasonry of use for increasing trade , was then , as it is now , very commonly adopted ; it is a custom " more honoured in the breach than in the observance , " and I confess that I much dislike to see
the square and compasses , or interlaced triangles , or any Masonic emblems displayed on a tradesman ' s card , or at the top of a playbill , announcing a benefit night for a country actor , with a request to his " Brethren" to support him ; in the present day there is no knowing whether the " Brother" so advertising is a Freemason or an Oddfellow , for the Odd-fellows too have adopted the square and compasses , cross pens , and other Masonic emblems , and 1 have before
now seen precisely the same emblems used indiscriminately in a local paper heading advertisements both for Freemasons and Odd-fellows . Such practices cannot be in accordance with the spirit of the Craft , for as every one before his initiation signs a declaration that he is not induced to join the Craft from any mercenary motion , he surely
ought not afterwards to attempt to make Freemasonry a portion of his trade . By the above remarks , I do not mean to cast a slur on the character of any of our ancient Brethren , the above instances are quoted merely to show what was then in vogue , but in the present advanced and enlightened age , such practices are surely most reprehensible *