Freemasonry And Its Teachings.

attain rather than to which we have already attained —which must draw us to itself as our reward rather than yield itself to us as our acquired right . So , too , must we regard the honour which is ours as workers for the temple of God . It is really no more ours than the image is the mirror ' s which reflects it ; and however seemingly we may possess the glory which shines about

us as we walk in the favour of the Sun of Righteousness —that sole fountain , sole end , and sole beginning of all that is good , we must ascribe " all glory to the Most High . " This ribbon of well-known colour teaches us that , like our Heavenly Father , we must be pure and unadulterated Truth ; but since this

virtue is opposed to the world ' s practice , we must expect opposition—not unfittingly represented by the thistle which is appended to the ribbon , and Avhieh is the emblem of our time-honoured name . But if the emblem represent our bane , it reminds us ol the antidote , for with it we naturally associate the motto ,

"Nemo me impure lacessit ; " and the spirit of this must be ours . Within the jewel is the sword ; and as by the Jews who rebuilt the temple iu the days of Ezra , so also by ourselves the sword as -well as the tools must be borne—the sword ( but let it be understood to be "the Sword of the S pirit , which is the

W ord of God" ) to enable us to drive back our foesthe tools to enable us to do our duty to our Lord . But even the very instrument of punishment is within the square and the compasses ; within the square on the sides of which should be engraved , " Judgment , Justice , Clemency , " within the compasses which teach that a proper limit must be drawn around vengeance and punishment . That square , also , is emblematical of all those glorious triads of virtues which

should adorn our lives , and the names of which will readily occur to the mind of every thinking Mason ; and those compasses are emblematic of the rule which describes for us a circle within which we must ever confine ourselves , and the boundaries of which we must never transgress . On that circle the Caledonians have inscribed their motto" PaxConcordiaYirtus "

, , , , even as sailors nail their colours to the mast ; " Pax , " agreement with others ; "Concordia , " union of hearts ; " Virtus , " manliness of disposition . Brethren all , let these be our ruling princip les—¦ "As much as lieth in us" let us . "follow peace with all men ; " in the path of duty , religions and social ,

let " our hearts burn within us" as we " walk humbly with our God" and lovingly with men ; in every station of life let us " dare do all that doth become a man , " bearing in mind that " who dares do more , " or less , " is none . " Above all , let us heed these sadly eloquent words" Tempus fur / it . " Soon must our

, allotted time have passed away , like a flower , like a shadow , like a bubble , like a vapour ; soon must the ceon which now is being absorbed by an oson , the dawn of which shall usher in the dedication-morn of our mystic fabric , which , like that on Moriah's height , amid a silence unmarred by sound of workman ' s tool ,

is noiselessly springing up into its destined growth , as springs up " some tall palm , " unseen and unnoted in a rich , untrodden , land . And when . that dedication-morn shall come , then , too , shall come forth in all the effulgence of His unapproachable glory , to view the work of His own design and of His creatures' agency , He who is the "greater than Solomon , " even the " King of kings and Lord of lords ; " He who is " the Grand Geometrician" the " Great

Freemasonry And Its Teachings.

Architect of the Universe ; " He who is the " one God and Father of us all ; " ay" . Father of all , in every age , In every clime adored , By saint , by savage , and by sage , Jeliovali—Jove—our Lord . " In wonderful condescensionindeedwill He make all

, , who have done their duty the sharers of His mighty triumph ; and from His gracious lips will drop those mellifluous words— " Well doue , ye good and faithful servants : enter ye into the joy of your Lord . " In ecstatic admiration His attendant hosts of cherubim and seraphim will shout , " 0 worthy Masons ! " whilst

high above all shall ring the outpouring of hearts soentirely devoted to their Maker as to be insensible toeverything but His praise ; and every stone of that gorgeous temple shall find a tongue aud a voice , and with one heart , and one tongue , and one voice shall they exclaim , "Not unto us , 0 Lord , not unto us , but unto Thy name give the praise—all glory to the-Most High ! " .

The Antiquity And Teachings Of Masonry.

THE ANTIQUITY AND TEACHINGS OF MASONRY .

EXTRACT PROM THE ADDRESS OF THE HOX . ROBERT B .. HALL , AT THE LAYING OP THE COUSER STOSB OP THE . NEW MASONIC TEMPLE , BOSTON , U . S . ( From the Boston Journal . ) The institution of Masonry has come down to us in its principle and spirit , if not in form , from a remote antiquity . Its vesti be tracedveiled in tho

ges may , mists of the dim past , faint and shadowy , and obscure it may be , bnt yet speaking witnesses to its ancient claims . At what particular age of the world its light was first revealed it is difficult to determine ; but thefield of investigation is ample , and materials are not wanting to develope probable conjectures . There are at least sufficient resemblances between Masonry and the

most ancient societies iu Phoenicia , Chaldaaa , and Egypt , to suggest their common origin , and such points of resemblance to the oldest mysteries as to render probable au affinity with them . Masonry , as now organised , is believed to be of Jewish origin , on the authority of its own . traditions , and from internal evidence well understood bv the Craft .

The erection of the Temple on Mount Moriah , by Solomon , King of Israel , was an occasion of the assemblage of bands of "cunning artificers , " especially from Tyre , at Jerusalem . While the Temple was building ,, the workmen are said to have been formed into a community , under a system of rules designed to facilitateperfection and efficiency in their art , and to promote

their common interests . This organisation was destined to survive the occasion which brought them together . At the completion of the Temple , the Craftsmen travelled in other lands where their skill might find employment . Their monuments are to bo found in the ruins of temles aud theatres which they erected in Phoenicia

p , Greece , and Rome , until the era of Christianity . Soon after this period traces of their history appear in publicrecords , as well as their works . In the middle ages , Masonry culminated in its greatest glory . It was patronised by the Throne and the Church , and overspread Europe with its marvels of architectural skill and beauty . At this date we have precise information in

regard to those societies , and but little is left to conjecture as to their nature and organisation . They were schools of instruction in , architecture , and cognate science and fraternities for mutual protection and relief . They used a symbolical language , derived from the practice of their profession ; they possessed the means of