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Article CURSORY REMARKS ON FREEMASONRY.-II. ← Page 2 of 2 Article MASTERPIECES OF THE ARCHITECTURE OF DIFFERENT NATIONS. Page 1 of 2 →
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Cursory Remarks On Freemasonry.-Ii.
honestly point out to him the reason Avhy . As Jason says to Pelias : — " But it shall become Both me and thee , leaving resentment past , To weave a common Avcb of bliss to conic . The fates abhorwhen kindred bosoms burn
, With hatred , hiding shame in enmity . " CAKY . Nor must Ave , on the other hand , mistake want of decision for kindness , nor vacillation for a Masonic spirit . If Ave are unfortunate enough to have some doggedly stupid members , who would fain form cliques to rule the Lodges into Avhich
they have crept , Ave must not allow them to succeed in thwarting us in our high object—the elevation of humanity . If any Lodge has " fallen from its hi gh estate , " let the ICAV true brothers who may still belong to it , as quietly as they can ( but , nevertheless , at all hazards of stupid members leaving them iu the pet ) , restore such Lodge Avith all
practicable speed , to its true position iu the Craft . We must ever avoid all unnecessary cause of offence , even to the weakest of our brethren ; but let us never tolerate any member in outraging our laAvs aud regulations , and then lay the flattering unction to our souls that our pusillanimity will promote peace and quietness . As well mi ght the civil
magistrate refuse to exercise the authority with which the constitution of his country has invested him , and plead as an excuse the fear of offending the unruly and thc malicious hordes " with which society is infested . Happy the brotherhood Avho , realizing the beautiful description of Milton : —
' . rearing thc licit }' , With some regard to what is just and ri ght , Shall lead their lives , and multiply apace , Labouring the soil , and reaping plenteous crop , Corn , wine , and oil ; and from the herd or Hock , Oft sacrificing bullock , lamb , or kid , With large wineofferiugs poured , and sacred feast , Shall their
spend days in joy unhhimcil , and dwell Under paternal rule , " Avithout a Ninirod arising- in their midst" Of proud ambitious heart , I IO not content With fair equality , fraternal state , Will arrogate dominion undeserved Over his brethren , and quite dispossess Concord and law of nature from the earth . "
Tho Worshipful Master then who would govern his Lodge creditably , must unite kindness Avith firmness , neither of Avhich Avill prove effective without the other . Let him remember that into his hands arc committed the government of the Lodge by the suffrages of its members ; and if he has been judicious in the choice of his WardensDeaconsand
, , Secretary , on himself will principally depend the maimer in Avhich the business will be conducted ; and whilst it is his duty to conciliate every brother as far as in his power ( " because , " as Terence says , " experience shows that there ' s nothing like gentleness and good nature" ) , yet he must never alloAv one or tAvo headstrong members to disturb the
harmony of the rest of the brethren , but , whenever necessary , exercise his lawful authority ; and whilst he takes care to do so in a truly fraternal spirit , he will find the brethren generally Avill cheerfull y supjiort him iu the faithful discharge of his duty ; that the Lodge over Avhich he has been called upon to preside will increase in prosperity ; that our antient and
beloved Craft will continue to be respected by the outer world , and more dear than ever to all its members . In the language of that ardent Mason , Robert Burns : — " May freedom , harmony , and love , Unite us in the grand design , Beneath th' omniscient above
eye , The glorious Architect divine . That AVC may keep th' unerring line , Still rising by the plummet's law , Till order bright completely shine . "
Masterpieces Of The Architecture Of Different Nations.
MASTERPIECES OF THE ARCHITECTURE OF DIFFERENT NATIONS .
BY J . G . LEGBAND . II . —THE ABCHITECTUEE OP THE HINDOOS ( CONTINUED ) . THE pyramids of Egypt are nothing compared to thc pagodas of Salsette and Eloru . The figures , the bas-reliefs , and the thousands of pillars hy which they are ornamented , all chiselled out of the same rock , indicate at least a thousand
years of consecutive labour , and lapse of time to about three thousand years . Thick and very lofty Avails form , around the most considerable , several square spaces , Avhich haA'e been flanked by bastions . Small chapels are contrived around , and sometimes in thc centre of these spaces , for different deities ; thc roofs of these
edifices are , like the towers , surmounted by images of the lingam , the phallus of the Romans ; the most renoAvncd temples have a sacred pool , consecrated by thc Brahmins , to which great virtues are ascribed . The other square spaces contain peristyles , sometimes of immense sizeunder which the people and travellers take
, shelter . There are also small nooks for tho portraits or statues of * those saints and kings AVIIO by their virtues have deserved apotheosis ; at the same time they serve as lodgings for the Brahmins .
laticnce , in the first jilace , and , secondly , the idea of along aud painful labour , executed by thousands of arms , during a great number of years , are tho characteristics of the ancient architecture of Hindostan , the majority of the monuments of Avhich are fashioned out of the very rock , and hollowed out of the mountains with an admirable skill . When , on the other hand , they arc in the pyramidal form , the Hindoos seem to have wished to make them like thc exterior of those same
mountains , to deck them with all the emblems of their worship , and to convert them to their use by a labour so prodigious , that they appear less as the work of man than of thc Creator . Such is thc pyramidal tomb at Scringapatam , the capital of the kingdom of Mysore , and of the dominion of the Tippoo Sultans . This tomb , remarkable for the number
of its storeys , is built spiring aAvay in an elevated mass , Avhich makes it participate at once of the character of the pyramids of Egypt and the septizonia of the Romans , where these storeys wore decorated Avith colonnades in the form of thc peristyle . In this tomb there arc counted a dozen of these storeys :
the loAvcst is environed by a Avail , Avhich serves as an enclosure to it , and Avhich rises to thc height of about tAvo tiers , forming around it a kind of fosse . The topmost storey serves as a pedestal to the sarcophagus ( properly called ) , which crowns the Avhole edifice , and the form of Avhich is nearly that of the urn of Agrippa reversed . This pedestal seems the summit of a square tower - , with a proportion almost similar to that of the
tombs of Palmyra . The door for entering this tOAver is fashioned in the form of a Moorish arch ; and in arcades made arclnvise there are ten openings or windows , situated one above the other , Avhich seem intended to give light to a staircase , or to sepulchral chambers on each storey . The tomb is of a form very analogous to that of the pagodas of Deogurand of the great pagoda of TanjoreAvhich
, , give an idea of the most ancient architecture of the Hindoos , and of that of their best style . The pagodas of Deogur Avere the first buildings raised by the Hindoos . They made simple pyramids of them by piling stone on stone , Avithout any other opening for the admission of light beyond a small door , five feet in height . In the
centre is a chamber li g hted by a lamp , Avhere all their religious ceremonies are celebrated . The famous pagoda of Tanjore is not better constructed than that of Deogur , though its form and ornaments arc better understood . The imagination can suppose how easy it is to impart to tombs of this description all tho richness of architecture and
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Cursory Remarks On Freemasonry.-Ii.
honestly point out to him the reason Avhy . As Jason says to Pelias : — " But it shall become Both me and thee , leaving resentment past , To weave a common Avcb of bliss to conic . The fates abhorwhen kindred bosoms burn
, With hatred , hiding shame in enmity . " CAKY . Nor must Ave , on the other hand , mistake want of decision for kindness , nor vacillation for a Masonic spirit . If Ave are unfortunate enough to have some doggedly stupid members , who would fain form cliques to rule the Lodges into Avhich
they have crept , Ave must not allow them to succeed in thwarting us in our high object—the elevation of humanity . If any Lodge has " fallen from its hi gh estate , " let the ICAV true brothers who may still belong to it , as quietly as they can ( but , nevertheless , at all hazards of stupid members leaving them iu the pet ) , restore such Lodge Avith all
practicable speed , to its true position iu the Craft . We must ever avoid all unnecessary cause of offence , even to the weakest of our brethren ; but let us never tolerate any member in outraging our laAvs aud regulations , and then lay the flattering unction to our souls that our pusillanimity will promote peace and quietness . As well mi ght the civil
magistrate refuse to exercise the authority with which the constitution of his country has invested him , and plead as an excuse the fear of offending the unruly and thc malicious hordes " with which society is infested . Happy the brotherhood Avho , realizing the beautiful description of Milton : —
' . rearing thc licit }' , With some regard to what is just and ri ght , Shall lead their lives , and multiply apace , Labouring the soil , and reaping plenteous crop , Corn , wine , and oil ; and from the herd or Hock , Oft sacrificing bullock , lamb , or kid , With large wineofferiugs poured , and sacred feast , Shall their
spend days in joy unhhimcil , and dwell Under paternal rule , " Avithout a Ninirod arising- in their midst" Of proud ambitious heart , I IO not content With fair equality , fraternal state , Will arrogate dominion undeserved Over his brethren , and quite dispossess Concord and law of nature from the earth . "
Tho Worshipful Master then who would govern his Lodge creditably , must unite kindness Avith firmness , neither of Avhich Avill prove effective without the other . Let him remember that into his hands arc committed the government of the Lodge by the suffrages of its members ; and if he has been judicious in the choice of his WardensDeaconsand
, , Secretary , on himself will principally depend the maimer in Avhich the business will be conducted ; and whilst it is his duty to conciliate every brother as far as in his power ( " because , " as Terence says , " experience shows that there ' s nothing like gentleness and good nature" ) , yet he must never alloAv one or tAvo headstrong members to disturb the
harmony of the rest of the brethren , but , whenever necessary , exercise his lawful authority ; and whilst he takes care to do so in a truly fraternal spirit , he will find the brethren generally Avill cheerfull y supjiort him iu the faithful discharge of his duty ; that the Lodge over Avhich he has been called upon to preside will increase in prosperity ; that our antient and
beloved Craft will continue to be respected by the outer world , and more dear than ever to all its members . In the language of that ardent Mason , Robert Burns : — " May freedom , harmony , and love , Unite us in the grand design , Beneath th' omniscient above
eye , The glorious Architect divine . That AVC may keep th' unerring line , Still rising by the plummet's law , Till order bright completely shine . "
Masterpieces Of The Architecture Of Different Nations.
MASTERPIECES OF THE ARCHITECTURE OF DIFFERENT NATIONS .
BY J . G . LEGBAND . II . —THE ABCHITECTUEE OP THE HINDOOS ( CONTINUED ) . THE pyramids of Egypt are nothing compared to thc pagodas of Salsette and Eloru . The figures , the bas-reliefs , and the thousands of pillars hy which they are ornamented , all chiselled out of the same rock , indicate at least a thousand
years of consecutive labour , and lapse of time to about three thousand years . Thick and very lofty Avails form , around the most considerable , several square spaces , Avhich haA'e been flanked by bastions . Small chapels are contrived around , and sometimes in thc centre of these spaces , for different deities ; thc roofs of these
edifices are , like the towers , surmounted by images of the lingam , the phallus of the Romans ; the most renoAvncd temples have a sacred pool , consecrated by thc Brahmins , to which great virtues are ascribed . The other square spaces contain peristyles , sometimes of immense sizeunder which the people and travellers take
, shelter . There are also small nooks for tho portraits or statues of * those saints and kings AVIIO by their virtues have deserved apotheosis ; at the same time they serve as lodgings for the Brahmins .
laticnce , in the first jilace , and , secondly , the idea of along aud painful labour , executed by thousands of arms , during a great number of years , are tho characteristics of the ancient architecture of Hindostan , the majority of the monuments of Avhich are fashioned out of the very rock , and hollowed out of the mountains with an admirable skill . When , on the other hand , they arc in the pyramidal form , the Hindoos seem to have wished to make them like thc exterior of those same
mountains , to deck them with all the emblems of their worship , and to convert them to their use by a labour so prodigious , that they appear less as the work of man than of thc Creator . Such is thc pyramidal tomb at Scringapatam , the capital of the kingdom of Mysore , and of the dominion of the Tippoo Sultans . This tomb , remarkable for the number
of its storeys , is built spiring aAvay in an elevated mass , Avhich makes it participate at once of the character of the pyramids of Egypt and the septizonia of the Romans , where these storeys wore decorated Avith colonnades in the form of thc peristyle . In this tomb there arc counted a dozen of these storeys :
the loAvcst is environed by a Avail , Avhich serves as an enclosure to it , and Avhich rises to thc height of about tAvo tiers , forming around it a kind of fosse . The topmost storey serves as a pedestal to the sarcophagus ( properly called ) , which crowns the Avhole edifice , and the form of Avhich is nearly that of the urn of Agrippa reversed . This pedestal seems the summit of a square tower - , with a proportion almost similar to that of the
tombs of Palmyra . The door for entering this tOAver is fashioned in the form of a Moorish arch ; and in arcades made arclnvise there are ten openings or windows , situated one above the other , Avhich seem intended to give light to a staircase , or to sepulchral chambers on each storey . The tomb is of a form very analogous to that of the pagodas of Deogurand of the great pagoda of TanjoreAvhich
, , give an idea of the most ancient architecture of the Hindoos , and of that of their best style . The pagodas of Deogur Avere the first buildings raised by the Hindoos . They made simple pyramids of them by piling stone on stone , Avithout any other opening for the admission of light beyond a small door , five feet in height . In the
centre is a chamber li g hted by a lamp , Avhere all their religious ceremonies are celebrated . The famous pagoda of Tanjore is not better constructed than that of Deogur , though its form and ornaments arc better understood . The imagination can suppose how easy it is to impart to tombs of this description all tho richness of architecture and