Masonry And Its Mission.

peud upon it . Nature is often hidden , sometimes overcome , seldom extinguished . Force makes nature more violent in tho return , * doctrine and discourse make nature less importune ; but custom only alters aud subdues nature . "A man ' s nature , " says Lord Bacon , " runs either to herbs or weeds ; therefore let him seasonably water the one , and destroy the

other . " Men ' s thoughts are much according to their inclination ; their discourse and speeches according to their learning and infused opinions ; but their deeds are according as they have been accustomed . We are so wonderfully formed that whilst we are creatures vehementl y desirous of novelty , AVC are as strongly attached to habit and custom . Man is a

bundle of habits , and therefore it is of the greatest importance to us to form right habits and to folloAv good examples , for example is everything—it is the school of mankind , and they will learn at no other . To form right habits , it is necessary that the human mind should be directed into projier channels for obtaining the right source of knowledge ; and

here Freemasonry steps in to our assistance , by directing our course . Whatever turns the soul inward on itself , tends to concentrate its forces , and to fit it for greater and stronger flights of science . By lookinginto physical causes , our minds are opened and enlarged . HOAV is the mind filled—IIOAV lost in wonder—as we behold the moon travelling in her brightness through thc dark blue sky , in the midst of ten

thousand times ten thousand stars . What an idea does it give of the poiver and glory of the Creator—and yet what a , poor idea . Far higher He is than the hi ghest heaven ; yea , they are as nothing in comparison . " Behold , even to the moon , and it shineth not : yea , the stars are not pure in his si ght ; hoiv much less man , that is a worm , and the son of

man which is a worm . " Job xxv , o , 6 . The more accurately we search into the human mind , thc stronger .- traces wc everyAi'here find of his wisdom who made it . If a discourse on the use of the parts of the body may be considered as a hymn to the Creator , the use of the passions , which are the organs of tho mindcannot be barren of praise to himnor

, , unproductive to ourselves of that noble and uncommon union of science and admiration which a contemplation of the works of infinite wisdom alone can afford to a . rational mind , whilst referring to Him Avliatever Ave find of bri ght , or good , or fair in ourselves—discovering his strength and wisdom even in our own Aveakness and imperfection—honourin g them where we

discern them clearly , and adoring their profundity where AVC arc lost in our search—we may be inquisitive without impertinence , and elevated Avithout pride we may be admitted , if I may dare to say so , into the counsels of the Almighty , by a consideration of his works . The elevation of the mind ought to be thc principal end of all our studies , which , if they do not in some measure effect , they are of very little jcrvice to us .

lhat great orator and philosopher , Cicero , says , " Est ani-. moruiii ingeniorumque nostrorum naturale quoddam quasi pabulum consicleratio contemplatiocpie naturie . " Freemasonry has already been stated to be a moral system which ( hereby proving its eastern origin ) , instructs its members by the aid of allegory and symbols , by the use of Avhich

souses are summoned to the aid of intellect , and amusement is judiciously blended with instruction . It finds " Tongues in trees , books in the running brooks , Sermons iu stones , and good in eA'erything . " And this method of instruction has not only the sanction of the remotest antiquity , but also that of the Saviour himself J who continually spoke , iu parables ; see also the

parable of Nathan to David , and the custom of the ancient nations in sending earth and water to their conquerors in token of subjection . Thus , everything ivhich meets the eye in a Freemason ' s Lodge is fraught with instruction ; the Bible points out the faith which leads to happiness , and is dedicated to the service of God because it is the inestimable gift of God to man ; the square teaches us to regulate our conduct by the principles of morality and virtue ; and the

compass to limit our desires to our station in life ; while tho very floor on ivhich Ave tread reminds us of our chequered existence in this life . Our lectures enforce the duties of morality , and imprint on the memory the noblest principles which can adorn the human . mind ; they instruct us in tho study and illustration of human science , and to trace the greatness and majesty of the Creatorby minutely analysing

, his works . The intellectual faculties expand as a desire for knOAvledo-e increases . What a sublime field for moral investigation and critical research do thc seven liberal arts and sciences afford ; the subtleties of grammar , rhetoric , and logic , the marvellous combinations of arithmetic , the universal application of geometry , the delicacy of musicand the sublimity

, of astronomy have each a separate charm to win the heart and 2 ioint to a Creator . Such are the studies tending to elevate the mind whicli our noble Order lays doAvn for its members , and he whose various talents shall allow him to overcome the impediments opposed to his advancement will be justly entitled to the distinction of a master of scienceand

, a perfect moralist . Now here it- may be said " This is all very well ; but do all Masons act up to their principles ? " Certainly not ; Avere they universally acted up to by all the brethren throughout tho world it would bo a millennium . Amongst the

various societies of mankind , few ( if any ) are wholly exempt from censure : among the disciples of our blessed Lord , Judas was a traitor , yet , because he was evil and yielded to Satan , did that make the eleven evil , or injure the truth which the Master he betrayed taught ? Far from it ; exceptio probett regulam ; and although from uiiiversals you may deduce particularsyetto argue that because one member of a Lodge is

, , a bad man that all arc bad , is folly . We are often taunted AA'ith making too much of Masonry , but the truth is , wc greatly underrate both its objects and capabilities , and are , therefore , often too ready to admit men among us whom , we can hardly expect to bestow a single thought upon either . Our worst foes have been those of our own household , who

have tarnished Masonic brightness aud lowered the standard of its excellency ; the uninitiated will not take the trouble to distinguish between such as arc untrue to their obligation aud those who continue faithful ; did they so , they would find the good men and true vastly to preponderate . A man that has no virtue in himself ewer envies virtue in othersfor

, men ' s minds will either feed upon their OAVII good or upon other ' s evil , —he who wants the one will prey upon the other ; and whoever is without hope of attaining to another ' s virtue will seek to come at even hand by depressing another ' s fortune .

The human heart is naturally more full of envy than charity ; and knowing this , it behoves all Masons to remember that Masonic life should bo an exemplification of Masonic principles ; and what can excel our three grand principles 1 By the exercise of brotherly love we are taught to vieivthe whole human species as one family , and to see in every sou

of Adam a brother of the dust ; as inhabitants of tho same planet , Ave are to aid , support , and protect one another . To relieve the distressed is incumbent ou all men , but particularl y on Masons , who ought to be linked together by an indissoluble chain of sincere a flection . To sooth calamity , alleviate miserycompassionate . misfortuneand to restore

, , peace to the troubled , jivind , is the great aim . of thc true Mason . Truth is a divine attribute , and the foundation of every virtue . To be good and true is the first lesson we arc taught in Masonry . On this theme we meditate , and b y its dictates endeavour to regulate our conduct . " The knowledge of ti'iith" says Bacon , "AA'hich is the presence of

, it , and the belief of truth , which is tlie enjoying of it , is thc sovereign good of human nature . " Virtue has been divided by some moralists into benevolence , which ] rarposes good ends ; prudence , whicli . suggests the I « sfc means of attaining them ; fortitude , AA'hich enables us to encounter the ; difficulties and dangers which oppose us in the pursuit oi these ends ;