Masonic Symbolism,

is promulgated . " It does not appear to us that , before the year 1440 , this society was known by any other name than that of ' John ' s Brothers ; ' and they then began to be called at Yalenciennes , ' Free and Accepted Masons , ' ' at which time in some parts of Flanders , by the assistance and riches of the brotherhoodthe first hospitals were erected for the relief of

, such as were afflicted with St . Anthony ' s fire . " ( Notes to Oliver ' s Historical Landmarks . ) The style and title of the institution ( says a writer in the FEEESIASONS MAGAZINE , 1858 ) is , " The ancient Fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons . " The word " Free " ori g inally signified that the person so called was free of the

company or guild of incorporated Masons ; and those operative Masons who were not free of the guild were excluded from working with those who were . We are told by many authors that this term was first applied in the tenth century , when the travelling Masons of Lombardy were incorporated by the Eoman Pontiff . "Accepted" we take

to be equivalent to the term initiated ,- and it doubtless alludes to the acceptance into their society by operative Masons of persons who were not operatives . An accepted Mason is one who has been adopted into the

Order , and has received the freedom of the society , in the same manner as the freedom of the City of London is now bestowed as a mark of honour on persons of distinguished rank , valour , or attainments . This is evident from the regulations made in 1663 , under G . M . the Earl of St . Albans , where the word is repeatedly used in this sensethus — " No person

, hereafter who shall be accepted a Freemason shall be admitted into any lodge or assembly until he has brought a certificate of the time and place of his acceptation , from the lodge that accepted him , unto the Master of that limit or division where such loclge is kept . And again , " No person shall be made or accepted a Freemason

unless free by birth , aud of mature age . " Another definition of " Free" is given by Bro . Smith , who quotes from Knapp ' s English Hoots , as follows— " As the Abbot was the head , so were the Friars the brethren ot" the establishment , in the same way as the Master and brethren of an hospitalwith usconstitute the members

, , of such a foundation ; the word Friar being a corruption of the French word Frere , derived from Latin , frater , a brother . " Innumerable instances mi ght be found of the word frere being used by our early writers ; but one shall suffice from Chaucer , the Froloaue , v . 208 :

" A Frere there was , wanton and merry . " In our word " Freemason , " descriptive of the brethren belonging to the fraternity of Masons , we preserve the original word , the prefix "free" referring not to the immunities of that body , but to their brotherhood ; the word Freemason being a corruption of the French frere , a . brotherand mctgona mason .

, , The derivation of the word " Mason" has g iven rise to much speculation . Monsieur Bagon , in a note to his Cours Pliilosophiqtte , says , " Le dictionnaire de Napoleon Landais ( 3 e edition , 1836 ) reproduit la meme faute que celui de l'Academie ; mais son auteur va plus loin ; car voulantd ' apres le

, Dictionnaire de Eaymond ( 2 e edition , 1835 , et sou supplement au dernier Dictionnaire de V'Academic ) doaner l ' etymologie dumot' franc-magon , ' il dit , dans l'ignorance de son sujet ' Conimes les Franoais ou les Francs out etc plus ardents quetoutes les autres nations a la conqucte de la Terre Sainteon a pu lux donner l ' cpithete de

, Francs-maoons" —a derivation much to be admired from its simplicity and humility ! But , continues M . Bagon , " Mais Franc-maoonnerie devrait aiors signifier maconnerie des Franoais ou des Francs , ce qui serait un non-sens , puisquela Franc-maeonnerie est une

corporation umverselle , a l ' usage des tons les peuples sans aucune exception . " A writer in the FREEMASONS MAGAZINE says : — C : I cannot see any good reason against it being derived from the mediawal Latin , inassa , a club ; domus massata being a club-house ( where gentlemen belonging to the club associate ) , orin other wordsa

, , tyled house , from the porter at the door being armed with a club to keep out strangers . " In another part of the MAGAZINE , I find the following in a letter from ' Scrutator ; " "Many allow that Masonry is derived from massa , a club , though luiwilling to allow that it was through the intervention of domus massata . This derivation I

first met with in a French work published last century . I shall now indicate another bond of connection between Massa and Masonry . Massa itself is a classical word , hut not used in the sense of a club before the middle

ages . On turning to Stevens ' s Spanish- Dictionary , published 1706 , I find inaca rendered by ' a mace , a club , a beetle ; ' and magan , 'a mace-bearer . ' Also mago is translated ' a beetle , a mallet ; ' magon , ' a great instrument to drive down stakes ; ' inagonadura , ' a ramming or beating in , or playing the mason , or mason ' s work . ' From the words maga ancl maco having the same meaning , they are

obviously froom the same root ; and it is as obvious that this root is massa , a club ; or if the Spanish word have an Arabic origin , it is possible the old Latin massa got the new meaning from its use in Spanish . According to Johnson , mace comes from a Saxon word almost identical with massa . Those who reject the idea of a mace-bearer

tyling the place in which to hold secret meetings may not object to the idea that as mago is a mallet , or mason ' s maid , so Masonry gets its name because it was the most important instrument of the workman . As to the French word maison , a house , I am not so sure if it came from the same root . Huet derives ma fori from the old

French inas , a house , and , consequently , it would be first written masson . On the other hand , maison is usuall y derived from inansio ( Latin ) to dwell ( hence English , mansion ) , afterwards corrupted to masio , and lastly to maison . "

Another derivation given is the Hebrew , massang , or masan . In an old edition of Ihit-chinson ' s Spirit of Masonry , 1775 , it says , in a note— " The ori ginal names of Mason and Masonry may probably be derived from or corrupted of iJ . v < rT-i \ pioi > , res arcana , mysteries , and Mvp-ns , sacris initiotus mysta—those initiated to sacred mysteries . "

Our illustrious Bro . Dalcho says , " The word Mason is derived from the Greek , and literally means a member of a religious sect , or one who is professedly devoted to the worship of the Deity . The reason of the term 'Free' being prefixed is probabl y derived from the Crusades , in which every man engaged in the expedition must have been born freeand under

, no vassalage or subjection . The term ' accepted' is derived from the indulgences granted by the Pope to all those who would confess their sins and join in the enterprise for the recovery of the Holy Land . It is well known that immense numbers of Freemasons were engaged in the holy warsand that their gallant and

enter-, prising conduct gained the esteem of the leaders of the army , who solicited initiation into the mysteries of their order . " Bro . Dalcho , however , in his derivation of "Free , " is manifestly wrong , as each mau marched under the banner of some particular leader , and in general was the vassal and serf of that leader ; had he saicl they

were called "free" from having accepted the indulgences of the Pope , and being thereby free from many troublesome ceremonies of the Church of Eome , as well as free from sin ( the lope having granted absolution of all sins past